Dorset parks and gardens given Green Flag status
A number of local open spaces have been recognised in the list
Parks, gardens and country parks across Dorset have today (Tuesday 26th July) been awarded Green Flag status - the quality mark for green spaces.
The Keep Britain Tidy accolade has been given to a total of 2,208 places this year.
Locally, they include:
- Durlston Country Park - Swanage
- Stour Meadows - Blandford
- The Milldown - Blandford
- Thorncombe Woods - Dorchester
- Dorchester Borough Gardens
- Greenhill Gardens - Weymouth
- Sandsfoot Gardens - Weymouth
- Easton Gardens - Portland
- The Loddon - Gillingham
- The Stour - Gillingham
- The Shreen - Gillingham
Swanage's Durlston Country Park has also been named as a Green Heritage Site, supported by Historic England, for the management of its historic features.
Cllr Ray Bryan, Dorset Council’s Portfolio Holder for Highways, Travel and Environment, said:
“This is a fantastic result, and an important reminder of how important our country parks and greenspaces are to the public and visitors to Dorset. They are places where we can all enjoy wildlife, landscape, outdoor activities of Dorset or just catching up with friends in the fresh air.
“Winning these awards is recognition of what superb parks we have and a way of saying thank you to the hard-working employees and volunteers that maintain the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”
Parks and open spaces have proved vitally important in the last couple of years, at times some of the only places we could get some fresh air and exercise during lockdowns.
Cllr Ann Weaving, Mayor of Weymouth, said:
“I’m absolutely delighted that Greenhill Gardens and Sandsfoot Gardens have been awarded Green Flag status once again. They are both such beautiful places that boast wonderful views of the Dorset coastline. Congratulations to the team at Weymouth Town Council for all the hard work that has taken place to help us win the Green Flag Awards.”
Keep Britain Tidy’s Accreditation Manager Paul Todd said:
“I would like to congratulate everyone involved in making these parks worthy of a Green Flag Award.
"These awards are testament to all the hard work of staff and volunteers, who do so much to ensure that it maintains the high standards demanded by the Green Flag Award.”